The 4 West Las Olas project, a planned 260-unit riverfront rental community in downtown Fort Laudersale with about 12,000 square feet of retail and 387 parking spaces, has obtained an $85 million construction loan. The developer is a locally based company led by Scott Bodenweber, Denny St. Romain and Thomas Vogel.

Trez Forman Capital Group provided the loan. Trez Forman is a joint venture formed in 2016 by Palm Beach-based Forman Capital and Vancouver, BC-based Trez Capital Group, one of Canada’s largest private commercial mortgage lenders. The venture is projected to complete more than $300 million in deals in 2018.

Trez Forman previously provided a $6 million land loan to the 4 West Las Olas owners when they acquired the one-acre site in mid-2017. Trez Forman will assume the land loan in the new construction loan.

Downtown Fort Lauderdale Attracts Renters

“Downtown Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding neighborhoods continue to gain momentum with renters,” said Brett Forman, president and CEO of Trez Forman, who also arranged the 4 West Las Olas deal. “Opportunities to develop new apartments along the river are scarce.”

Overall, Fort Lauderdale is still an active apartment market. Currently, according to Yardi Matrix data, 20 properties are under construction representing a total of over 5,900 units. In 2017, investors snapped up 39 apartment properties locally, though that was down from 49 in 2016.

The borrowers are comprised of executives from Elevate Partners and NCC Development Group. Elevate is a real estate development and investment firm focused on the multifamily sector. Its primary partners include St. Romain, Vogel and Bodenweber.

NCC is a real estate development firm focused on multifamily. The firm’s partners, David Biggs and Robert Mathias, specialize in developing multifamily projects in both the rental and for-sale segments.